Apparatus for rolling fibrous rod-like material



Sept. 26, 1961 s. G. HAWTIN ET AL 3,001,231

APPARATUS FOR ROLLING FIBROUS ROD-LIKE MATERIAL Filed April 23, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 f? 23 34. 45 Q d Wye/7W5 24 Se/Wyn George Haw/m Edward 1/0/7765 Up/cm J0/7/7 Down/0g By f/ze/r af/omeys Sept. 26, 1961 s. G. HAWTIN ET AL 3,001,231

APPARATUS FOR ROLLING FIBROUS ROD-LIKE MATERIAL Filed April 23, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG 3 1 %;E k; 51 Mme/vars 24 a Se/Wyn George Ham/n Edward James Up/orr John Dow/7mg I By fhe/r of/omeys Zea/ g 26 b MMM States Patent 2 3,001,231 APPARATUS FOR ROLLING FIBROUS ROD-LIKE MATERIAL e wy Geo ge H wtin, Sp ndw, Edwa d James Up n,

Derby, and John Downing, Spondon, England, assignors to British Celanese Limited, London, England, a British company Filed Apr. 23, 1 959, Ser. No, 8 3,499 Claims priority, application Great Britain May 2, 1958 s 6 Claims. (Cl. 18-11) This invention relates to a new device for subjecting rod-like material to a rolling operation between two surfaces- US. patent application Serial No. 695,562 filed Novernber 14, 1957 describes the manufacture of a fibrous rod-like material, that is a substantially cylindrical produQt, which is suitable for use in the production of cigarette filter tips. The material is made up of a large number of highly curled and entangled filaments. The said specil ation also describes the improvement of the-rod-ltke material in form and surface by rolling it between two surfaces, thereby rendering it even more suitable as a material for cigarette filter tips. The new device is particularly suitable for elfecting this rolling operation.

In the new device the rod-like material is guided lengthwise between and across two discs arranged for rotation in their planes. The discs are separated by a distance depending on the size of the material to be rolled, and are arranged for rotation such that the per: tions of the discs facing one another move in the same general direction. In addition to being arranged for rotation the discs are arranged for oscillatory movement in their planes in a direction generally at right angles to the path of the rod-like material, the oscillatory movement of one disc differing in phase by approximately 180 from that of the other. Given a suitable spacing between the discs, the combined effect of the rotation of the discs and their oscillatory movement is to propel the material across and between the discs and at the same time to roll it, the direction of rolling rotation being first in one direction and then in the other, but without materially changing the path of the material in space.

Accordingly our new device comprises a pair of spaced discs arranged for rotation, guide means for guiding rodlike material in lengthwise direction across and between facing portions of the discs, means for rotating the discs, the direction of rotation being such that the facing portions embracing the path of the rod-like material move in the same general direction, and means for imparting oscillatory movement to each of said discs in its plane, the two oscillatory movements being in directions generally at right angles to the path of the rod-like material and in approximately opposite phase.

Means may be included for heating the discs and/or for keeping them wetted with water or other liquid. Thus the planes of the discs may be vertical and a trough for hot water may embrace the lower portion of one or both discs or radiant heaters may be provided to radiate heat on to the discs over part of their travel. Heat or heat and moisture is often helpful when effecting the rolling of the fibrous rod-like material of cellulose acetate referred to in the above mentioned co-pending application.

One form of the new device will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which FIGURE 1 is a side view of the device,

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of the device FIGURE 3 is a view in vertical section taken on the line A-A' of FIGURE 1.

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic edge view of the discs and associated parts of another embodiment of the invention.

2 he v e shown in GS- 1 o 3 a lus s ampuses a supporting framework generally indicated at Ill having upper horizontal members 11 and lower horizontal ment,- bers 12. A horizontal shaft 13 is journa'lled in bearings 14 and 15 carried by the members 11. A shaft 16 is similarly journalled in bearings 17, and a further shaft 19 in bearings 20, the bearings being carried by the, lower members 12. An arm in the form of a subsidiary rectangular frame 21 is pivoted near one end about the shaft 13, being carried thereon by bearings 2.; and 23 mounted on the frame 21. A further shaft 24 is jour: nalled in bearings 25 carried by the frame 21; at its inner end the shaft 24 carries a disc 26;. A second arm in the form of a subsidiary frame 27 is similarly pivoted near one end on the shaft 13, beingcarried thereon by bearings 28 and 29, and carries a shaft 39 journalled in bearings 31 and 32; at its inner end the shaft carries a disc 33 facing the disc 26. Connecting Kids 34 are journalled at their upper ends on the shafts 24; and 39 and at their lower ends on crank pins 35 carried 180 apart by the outer ends of the shaft 19; rotation of the shaft 19 thus results in an approximately vertical oscillation of the discs 26 and 33 in opposite phase; in other words while disc 26 is ascending disc 33 is descend,- me

A source of power generally indicated at 36 drives the shaft 19 and in turn the shafts 1,6, 13, 24 and 39 by chain d sprocket d i e generally indica ed t .3 38, 3? ift and 41.

The lower portions of the discs 26 and 33 depend into a tank 42 for water or other liquor. The tank may be provided with heating means (not shown), for instance a closed heating coil or a perforated pipe admission of steam. The tank 42 may be replaced by an electric radiant heating element, generally indicated by dotted lines at 42, disposed between the discs 26 and 33. a i

Between the upper parts of the discs 2,6 and 33 are guide means, in the form of bars .43 and 44, which may be cylindrical, carried by supports 45 and 4,6 themselyes carried by the main frame 10. The bars thus definea path for the rod-like material 47 fed between the discs; Conveniently, tubular guides 48 and 49 for the material 47 may be provided as indicated at the feed and delivery ends. In FIGURE 3 the discs 26 and 33 are shown displaced from their mean positions.

It will be appreciated that with the discs 26 and 33 rotating in the direction indicated in FIGURE 1, rod-like material 47 fed in between the bars '43 and 44 via entry guide tube 48 is propelled towards the exit tube 49 by the rotary motion of the discs. Simultaneously it is rolled between the discs by the oscillatory motion of the latter which motion does not itself lead to vertical movement of the material as a whole.

The discs 26 and 33 may be substantially parallel in which case their spacing should be rather less than the thickness of the material to be processed. However the discs may be set at a small angle to one another so that their spacing diminishes in the direction of travel of the material thereby progressively compressing the latter. If desired additional guide bars may be provided between the discs whereby two or more lengths of rod-like material may simultaneously be processed. Againone or more lengths of rod-like material may be processed between the upper portions of the discs and one or more lengths between the lower portions of the discs but in opposite direction.

The invention is not limited to a device in which the discs are substantially co-axial at the mid-point or some other point of their oscillatory movement. Thus, in the case of discs mounted for rotation in vertical planes, the lower portion of one disc may face the upper portion of the other in which case the discs must rotate in opposite directions in order that the operative facing portions may both be moving in the direction that the rod-like material is required to travel. In this case moreover two or more discs may be mounted in spaced relation on one shaft for rotation and oscillation and two or more mounted in spaced relation on a second shaft for rotation and oscillation, the discs on the one shaft entering the spaces between the discs on the second shaft; guide means for a length of material to be processed reinterposed between adjacent disc surfaces. Such an arrangement is illustrated diagrammatically in FIGURE 4 in which two discs 26a, 26b mounted on a shaft 24a enter the spaces between three discs 33a, 33b, 33c, mounted on a-shaft a. Between each pair of adjacent disc surfaces is a pair of guide rods 43a, 44a, adapted to guide a length of material 47a; these four processing spaces are provided by five discs instead of one processing space by two discs as in the device specifically shown in FIG- URES'l and 2.

' As already indicated the device of the present invention is particularly useful for improving the form and surface of thefibrous rod-like material described in the above mentioned application by a rolling operation. The fibrous rod-like material may be that obtained by extruding an acetone solution of cellulose acetate into water through a spinning jet having a large number of closelyspaced orifices distributed over the whole of a circular area, and drawing the mass of filaments from the water at a speed less than half the linear rate of extrusion. The material may for instance have an initial diameter of about 12 mm. and contain about 4,500 filaments of total denier 150,000. This material, after washing more or less free from acetone may be passed wet at about 3 metres per minute through the device described above and shown in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, the discs 26 and 33 having a diameter of about cm. and the tank 42 containing water at a temperature of about C. The surface of the material may thus be smoothed and the cross section brought to substantially circular form, the diameter being reduced to about 8 mm. in the process. Alternatively the water bath'may be omitted and the discs heated to to 200 C.; in this case the material may be dried before passage be tween the discs.

What we claim is: 1. Apparatus for propelling and rolling a continuous length of rod-like material between two surfaces, said 4 l apparatus comprising a pair of spaced rotatable discs, guide means for guiding rod-like material in lengthwise direction in a path across and between facing portions of the discs, means for rotating the discs in directions such that the facing portions of the discs embracing the guides move 'in' the same general direction, and'fme'ans for imparting to each of said discs a continuous oscillatory movement in its plane, the tWo oscillatory 'move ments being in directions generally at right angles to the path of the rod-like material and in approximately opposite phase.

2. Apparatus according to'claim -1, whereinthe discs are substantially co-axial at some point of their oscillatory movements.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, said apparatus including means for heating at least one of the discs;

4. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the planes of the discs are vertical, said apparatus including a trough for holding liquid, said trough embracing the lower portion of the discs. I

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide means comprises a pair of spaced bars extending be tween and across facing portions of the discs.

6. Apparatus for propelling and rolling a continuous length of rod-like material between two surfaces, said apparatus comprising a first driven shaft, two arms pivoted about said shaft, two axially spaced substantially parallel discs, one carried by each arm and each rotatable about an axis parallel with the said first driven shaft, chainsand sprockets for driving said disces from-said first driven shaft, a second driven shaft parallel with said first driven shaft, cranks carried 180 apart by said sec-'- ond driven shaft, connecting rods between'saidcranks and said arms for oscillating said arms continuously; and a pair of guide bars extending across and between said discs for guiding the rod-like material to be propelled and rolled.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES FATENTS I lllingworth Feb. 14, 1882 

